MIAMI — Anthony Rendon drove in four runs, Daniel Murphy drove in three more and the Washington Nationals overcame a camera-denting home run by Miami’s Giancarlo Stanton to beat the Marlins 7-2 on Monday night.
Murphy and Rendon each hit two-run doubles in the seventh to help the Nationals break the game open. Rendon also hit his 23rd home run in the second inning, and Murphy followed with his 21st an inning later.
Combined, they were 6 for 9. The rest of the Nationals were 2 for 26.
Stanton hit his major league-leading 53rd home run for the Marlins, with the ball striking a TV camera just over the right-field wall. But that wasn’t enough to keep the Marlins from losing for the seventh time in their last eight games.
A.J. Cole (2-4) allowed two runs — one earned — and five hits in 5 2/3 innings to get the win. He struck out five and walked four while snapping a four-start losing streak.
Adam Conley (6-7) continued his Marlins Park struggles. He gave up four hits and three runs in four innings, and his home ERA this season actually dipped a tiny bit to 7.56. On the road, his ERA is 2.89.
Raudy Read got his first big league hit for Washington, a seventh-inning chopper off the glove of reliever Jarlin Garcia — who was charged with four runs and recorded only one out.
Washington’s magic number for clinching the NL East is now down to 10.
Nationals center fielder Michael A. Taylor started an 8-4 double play in the second inning when he sprinted to snare Dee Gordon’s tailing liner to short center and then caught Brian Anderson too far off the bag at second. The next two batters also were denied by sensational catches — Miami’s Christian Yelich leaped to grab Trea Turner’s fly to the wall in center leading off the third, and Howie Kendrick was then robbed by a sliding Stanton in right field.
The run of great catches ended there, when Murphy connected on his 21st home run — one that sailed into the Marlins’ bullpen.
Washington had two errors in the first inning, both on throws. The Nationals had two errors in their last 14 games entering Monday, and hadn’t had a two-error inning since July 14.
Marlins second baseman Dee Gordon lost his streak of seven consecutive multihit games. He went 1 for 4, and ended the game in the on-deck circle.
Nationals righty Erick Fedde (right forearm flexor strain) went on the 10-day disabled list. Washington also recalled catcher Pedro Severino from Triple-A Syracuse.
Marlins lefty Wei-Yin Chen (left elbow), who hasn’t pitched since May 1, was reinstated from the DL. He’ll be in the bullpen for now, and made his first career relief appearance in the eighth — working a perfect inning. First baseman Justin Bour (right oblique strain) played another rehab game for Double-A Jacksonville, and could return to Miami later this week.
Right-hander Stephen Strasburg (11-4, 2.90 ERA) starts for Washington against Miami righty Odrisamer Despaigne (0-2, 4.13 ERA) as the series continues on Tuesday night.
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